Card-delivering machine.



No. 63U,|38. Patented Allg. I, |899. T. B. TUTTLE.

CARD DELIVERING MACHINE.

(Application filed May 1l, 1899.)

No Model.)

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UNTTEn STATES PATENT OEEICE.

THOMAS B. TUTTLE, OF OARTHAGE, MISSOURI. i

CARD-DELIVERING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No.'630,138, dated August 1, 1899.

Application tiled May 1l, l S99. Serial No. '716,364 (No model.)

To all whom it may] concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS B. TUTTLE, a citizen ofthe United States, residing at Carthage, in the count-y of Jasper and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Card-Delivering Boxes or Holders, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to machines for delivering cards and like articles from a box.

The object of the invention is to produce a machine which will deliver cards singly. It is especially intended for the use of postmasters, so that in selling a few cards at a time there may be no danger of miscounts, as is frequently the case when cards are counted out by hand. Vhile the machine may be used for other purposes, the manipulation of postal cards and stamped envelops is its special function.

Figure l is a side elevation of the box and feed mechanism. Fig. 2 is a front elevation. Fig. 3 is a section about on line 3 3, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section about on line 4 4, Fig. 1.

The rectangular box or casing A may be of tin, japanned iron, or otherlight material and preferably has a hinged cover B. A cross-bar O extends across the box near the rear upper corner, said cross-bar being supported by screws or other devices D, passing through the sides of the box. A thin sheet of metal E is attached at its upper end by a set-screw F to the bar O, and the screw or a nut thereon may be used to adjust the height of the `upper edge of the plate E. The lower edge of the plate extends forward to near the front of the box, and the plate E extends downward and curves forward, forming an incline or curved guide for cards. The curve of guide E may be changed by slightly springing the plate by hand or otherwise.

A feed-shaft G extends crosswise of the box near the front lower corner. This shaftpasses through slots H in the sides of the box. One end of shaft G has a crank or operating-handle, as I, outside the box, and springs K embrace or engage the shaft to pull it in the slots H toward the cards to be fed, but permitting the roll to yield.

A cylinder or feed-roller L is fixed to shaft G so as to rotate therewith. This roller has a number of friction or adhesion rings or bands M on its periphery, these rings beingpreferably of rubber or similar yielding material. A number of rubber bands of common construction applied to the roller give good feeding-surface which will adhere to the card in feeding, yet freely deliver a card.4

A slot O in the front of the casing, near the bottom, permits the cards to feed out.

To operate the device, a bunch or package of cards may be dropped into the box so as to lie on the plate E. The cards, if of the character of usual postal cards, will arrange themselves in about the position shown at R, the front card of the bunch slipping a little under the roller L. By rotating the roller in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 3, the front card R will be drawn down and fed out through slot O, and when this card is out of the box the next card will be fed out, the rubber rings M acting as friction-surfaces to draw or feed the cards singly.

By preference the roller L will be of the same circumference as the length of the cards, and then every turn of the handle will feed out a card.

The curved guide E serves as a support for the cards placed thereon and tends to separate them, the action of gravitation causing the lower edge of the cards nearest the cylinder to slip along the curved plate, the card next the cylinder extending somewhat under the same,being pressed forward by the weight of cards behind. The adjustable feature of this guide E permits the plate to curve on different arcs, so as to feed cards of different degrees of flexibility or of different sizes with the proper frictional bearing against the feedroller.

The box may be fastenedto a table or shelf or to the wall in any convenient Way. The delivery of the cards may be very rapid, about as fast as a person can Well count, and there is little or no danger of two cards passing out of the box at the same time, as the roller with rubber surface selects the front card unerringly. The springs K pull the roller downward on the front edge of the card with a light pressure as the curved plate E guides the front lower edge of said card against and partly under the feed-roll.

The space behind the bar O can be used for IOO v handle.

the storage of a bunch of postal cards, if desired. As such cards generally come in packages of twenty-live, one or two packs may be dropped into the box at a time, and the small retail sales of such cards may be made by feeding the cards out singly by turning the In actual use the device is found to work to great advantage. The simple construction enables the box to be sold at alow price. The weight of such a box for postal cards, constructed of common tin-plate with wire crank and shaft and wooden feed-roll, is only a few ounces, so that the device may be transported by mail at small expense.

What I claim is- 1. In a card-feeding device, an inclosing box having a slot at its front face, a feed-roll extend-ing across the box near said slot and having ahandle outside the box, and the flexible curved plate within the box with its lower edgel extending close to the feed-roll and serving as the support for cards with their lower edges placed thereon, whereby the position and curvature of the cards may be regulated, all combined substantially as described.

2. A box for delivering cards and the like, having a delivery-slot near the lower front edge, a feed-roll wi thin the box near said slot and having au operating-handle outside the box, the iiexible guide-plate having its lower front edge supported in proximity to the lower surface of the feed-roll, and means for adjusting the rear upper edge of the guideplate, whereby the curvature of the plate on which cards are to rest may be regulated, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS B. TUTTLE.

Witnesses:

L. M. MURPHY, JNO. F. BLAKENEY. 

